We have more choices now than ever before but that may not be a good thing. We are suffering from decision paralysis. We don’t always know what’s good enough.
More More More
The average fast-food burger weighed 3.9 ounces in the 1950s. Now, it’s 12 ounces. A serving of French fries was 2.4 ounces, now it’s 6.7 ounces. While our portion sizes increased, so did our waistlines. From 1960 to 1962, only 13.3% of Americans were obese. That number increased to 41.9% by 2020. We wanted more-more-more and paid for it with our health.
In 1975, the average house cost $43,400 and a new car set you back $4,950. Adjusted for inflation, that would be $238,900 and $27,250 in 2022 dollars. The problem? In 2022, the average cost of a house was actually $428,700 and a new car $48,200. All the while the federal minimum wage ($2.10 per hour in 1975) remains stagnant. Today’s federal limit is set at $7.25, far below the $10.02 it should have been if that 1975 wage was adjusted for inflation. We pay more-more-more but get less (relatively speaking) for our money.
It goes to show that more is not always better. Sometimes it’s just more.
Decision Paralysis
Some people will argue we have it better than people in the 50s and 70s. After all, we have more choices than we did back then. The number of restaurants (usually fast food) has expanded, there are more brands of luxury cars, and today’s houses are built larger with more amenities. On the surface, that’s great! We’re getting more-more-more, but is that actually a good thing?
Welcome to the world of decision paralysis, where it is far too easy to get caught up in which of those many options to choose from than on actually making a decision. Why? Because we don’t only want more, we also want what’s best. That leads to overthinking. Overthinking leads to procrastination, and procrastination, if it lasts too long, could cause us to miss out on a good thing.
I saw myself sitting in the crotch of this fig tree, starving to death, just because I couldn’t make up my mind which of the figs I would choose. I wanted each and every one of them, but choosing one meant losing all the rest, and, as I sat there, unable to decide, the figs began to wrinkle and go black, and, one by one, they plopped to the ground at my feet.
Sylvia Plath, The Bell Jar (1963)
The Perfection Trap
There is usually more than one way to get the results you want. Even so, a perfectionist will never be satisfied because they will always wonder if they made the “best” decision. Instead of appreciating the good thing they have, they worry about what could have been.
This is where more more more gets us into trouble. Too many choices can actually cause us more stress and decrease our quality of life. Barry Schwartz drives the point home in his TED Talk: The Paradox of Choice where he not so jokingly talks about buying a new pair of jeans.
We end up less satisfied with the result of the choice than we would be if we had fewer options to choose from … It’s easy to imagine that you could’ve made a different choice that would’ve been better. And what happens is this imagined alternative induces you to regret the decision you made, and this regret subtracts from the satisfaction you get out of the decision you made, even if it was a good decision.
Barry Schwartz, TED Talk: The Paradox of Choice (2015)
Less Is More
What can we do to get past decision paralysis in a more-more-more world?
Remember it’s okay to settle sometimes. Unless it’s a life-changing decision, sometimes “good enough” is the best decision. Consider your options, eliminate the “bad” ones, and choose from what’s left. It doesn’t have to be so hard. If it helps, consider getting an opinion from someone you trust, setting a deadline to keep from procrastinating, or breaking your decision into smaller steps to make your choice feel easier. The key is to let go of the expectation that everything has to be perfect.
We are fortunate to live in a developed country where we have the freedom of choice. What we don’t want to do is to take that privilege for granted or let it overwhelm us. You can live a happier life by not falling into the perfection trap. Appreciate the little things in life.
References
1975 Car Prices Brought Sticker Shock, Then Rebates. Automotive News. https://www.autonews.com/article/19960626/ANA/606260830/1975-car-prices-brought-sticker-shock-then-rebates
Adult Obesity Facts. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. https://www.cdc.gov/obesity/data/adult.html
Median Home Price by State 2022. Worldpopulationreview.com. https://worldpopulationreview.com/state-rankings/median-home-price-by-state
Minimum Wage | U.S. Department of Labor. DOL.gov. https://www.dol.gov/general/topic/wages/minimumwage
New-Vehicle Prices Set Record in July 2022, According to Kelley Blue Book, as Inventory Improves Year-Over-Year and Luxury Share Remains Elevated. Prnewswire.com. https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/new-vehicle-prices-set-record-in-july-2022-according-to-kelley-blue-book-as-inventory-improves-year-over-year-and-luxury-share-remains-elevated-301603225.html
Schwartz, B. (2015). The Paradox of Choice. TED Talks. https://www.ted.com/talks/barry_schwartz_the_paradox_of_choice?language=tt
US. Inflation Calculator | Find US Dollar’s Value from 1913-2022. US Inflation Calculator. https://www.usinflationcalculator.com/
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